John’s song (untitled)
My brother in-law has been very busy and productive lately. I guess that’ll be over once he starts back to school in the fall. Anyway, the untitled band which Andrew is a part of has released a few songs over the last two years that have all been ok. They have produced all these works by themselves with a little computer software help and their various musical talents. This is a review of their latest untitled release, John’s song. Which I can only hope refers to the John in the band and not Andrew’s father, who I’m sure in his own right is an equally brilliant John. Before I go any further I’d like to straight out ask these guys to either name their band Untitled or come up with a name and name this song too. It can’t be that difficult!
So, this is as stated on Andy’s Music page, a bootleg-on-purpose song. To me that means that they wanted to get it out there and couldn’t be bothered with studio-type tweaking and so if that was the point then bravo! You’ve done it! Either the mic was too close to the cymbals or in the case of my ex-drummer the drummer in question has a tendancy to hit everything much harder during the recording than during the sound check.
Guitar
The bootleg-mystery-tune starts with Andy whistling a bit and then smacking the mic a bit to make sure everything was ready to go. Followed by a little playful banter and then the guitarist starts into the three chords that will be the foundation for the song. These three chords got old rather quickly even when some distortion was added. There may be more to the guitar work when I get to hear the cleaned up version but with the snare hissing and the various treble limit spikes throughout the song it was hard to here anything but these three chords throughout the song. I’d also like to add that even though I’m a late 80’s early 90’s metal guy, I was kinda hoping to here a small solo or even a tempo change at one point and it never happened with the exception of the two or three single notes played at the very end while the last note faded out. Those last couple of notes left me thinking that the guitarist is a very creative individual that could’ve added more to this piece.
Percussion
I’ve been looping this song over and over while I write this review and I’m starting it up now for the 7th time I believe. The drums are sounding louder and the guitar softer everytime I go through this again so I’d push them back a bit when you sit down to tweak this track. I like the drum work in this song otherwise. I think it matches the music well and keeps things mixed up, new and interesting for the most part. I did get a thought towards the end of the song that the drummer may have been getting a bit bored. Again, a tempo change could’ve livend things up towards the end. Andy also knows me well enough to know that I’m kinda biast and that I generally listen to heavier music and so keep in mind that my two cents are very heavy and have lots of hair growing out of them and could have possibly been dipped in blood or some other bodily fluid at one point.
Vocals
Andy is a very cool guy. With that I think you know what’s coming here Andy. Before I dive into this I’d like to state that the vocals part of music to me is not my favorite. I’m normally way more into the music side of things. With the exception of Chris Cornell, Robert Plant, and a few other rogue vocalists I tend to think of the vocals as another instrument in music and usually not a very good one. So, Andy my good buddy, if you’re still reading this, here we go. You and your sister have very lovely voices and I have no idea where you got them from so bravo on that. I couldn’t barely here the vocals until you got very loud and at that point they were clipping out here and there on the recording. I can’t comment on the lyrics because I couldn’t make them out with the exception of the words angels flying I think. You have a tendency to sound like you are very emotional during these songs at times, and then at other times you sound like you’re singing back-up to someone else. I’m not sure what to say about the vocals other than try it again and try to stick to one emotion. You sound kind of sad for a while, then very sad, following by tired, sleepy, and then like you’re in pain or something. I don’t know. Again, I’m not the best person to review lyrics and vocals, but that’s my two cents.
Overall
On a scale of what, like, 1-5? I’d give it a three. It’s a good effort, and worthy of being called a bootleg at any rate. I can’t wait to hear the cleaned up version if I get a chance to since Andy may never speak to me again after he reads this.
May 9th, 2005 at 9:27 am
yowzers!
that’s my inspector gadget impression, not my reaction to your review.
crickey!
that’s my reaction to your review.
so, phew – well, thanks for leaving such a detailed review of the song. i’m glad you enjoyed it in the end!
first thing i ought to mention is that the “band” composes of three members right now. john, dave and myself. john and dave are both fantastic drummers naturally, but they both play the guitar as well. i just sing. we don’t have a band name because we only recently decided to call ourselves a “band”. i wouldn’t say we’re particularly serious about going anywhere with it at the moment though.
the other songs on my site are ones i’ve done with other friends. not john and dave. so, they’re not related to the “unnamed band”.
john’s song, which remains untitled until he gets off his lazy backside and names it, is (get ready for the review points to drop!) a religious song. it’s about the adventure of christianity, i guess. i’ll post the lyrics at the end of the comment.
the reasoning behind the bootleg idea was to just record the song to.. i SUPPOSE.. in a way show off the fact that we’re pretty good live, unlike your average joe band who releases studio recordings first, then shocks everyone with their lame live sessions. once we get the time and (possibly money) gear together, we will record it properly; adjusting the volume levels respectively per instrument, adding any effects, whatever.
in response to each section:
guitar: john is playing the guitar. yes, the chord pattern is simple. but very effective, we like to think. unfortunately john has yet to find the right guitar effect for it. he’s looking for a very atmospheric and spooky sound to begin with before the distortion hits. the chords do vary a bit during the song, but it’s probably hard to here what with it being a bootleg and all. as for a solo and other add-ons, dave has actually come up with some extras for the guitar but as i mentioned above, the band only consists of three of us at the moment. so unless dave and john were to grow another set of arms each, we don’t have another guitarist. i know the chords for the song but i’m not particularly brilliant at keeping a rhythm on the guitar. i’ll keep practising it but i want to make sure i concnetrate on the singing during the song rather than playing it as well. it’s too much responsibility for me.
percussion: again, the bittersweet idea of doing a bootleg has meant that the drums have come out louder than anything else. i think dave is still working on exactly what he wants to do during the song. i would disagree with him being bored though – he certainly doesn’t look bored when he’s playing it. the final roll before the end of the song is immense and looks pretty difficult to me (but i’m no drummer). thanks for the ideas though.
vocals: i’m the first to admit that i’m not a singer. i prefer to call myself an actor. but, thanks for the positive comments. unfortunately (again) the bootleg hasn’t picked up on the words and has made the verses sound rather empty. but i assure you that hearing it there in the room, or hearing it when we’ve recorded it, will change your opinion on the varying of emotions. the song is what i like to call an epic. it has harsh, poetic lyrics that leave me feeling crippled and weak afterwards. each time i sing the chorus i feel my eyes start to well up, and it certainly drains the emotion out of me when i finish it.
anyway, thanks again, bro-in-law.. and i hope my response helps answer any questions or clarify anything you were unsure about.
-andy
ps:
the lyrics are as followed:
the rain it falls – and water hurts my eyes
see the world in its darkness – drowning in its pride
life is hard, but fallen all the same
light a torch for me jesus, so i can see the way
you see the heavens – and earth down far below
beautiful people, like flowers all on show
but your world has gone dark, your flowers have grown numb
and they wait – yeah they wait – they wait for you to come
chorus:
buy a ticket next to mine
and we’ll ride, yeah we’ll ride
light a lantern next to mine
and we’ll fight, yeah we’ll fight
angels fly around, make no sound
make no sound
life will make you cry
but then you’ll fly
yeah you’ll fly
a man walks by, adorned by his own majesty
blinded by what he can see
his days are counted short, they fade out in the wind
and precious little memory fades alongside him
with his last breath he exclaims
“i want to lose these chains…
that hold me so close to the flames”
chorus
May 9th, 2005 at 9:32 am
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